52] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1814. 



serving the pay, honours, and 

 prerogatives which they now en- 

 joy. At the same time the king 

 issued an order, autliorizing all 

 conscripts of the class of 1815, 

 who had been called out, to re- 

 turn to their homes, or to remain 

 there if returned ; and informing 

 all other soldiers, who had quitted 

 their colours on a false interpreta- 

 tion of a decree of the provisional 

 government, that they should be 

 considered as absent on a limited 

 furlough. 



It may be a matter of some inte- 

 rest to trace the proceedings of 

 the dethroned or abdicated em- 

 peror of France, to his arrival at 

 the island allotted for his residence. 

 As far as the account of his beha- 

 viour on his journey from Fon- 

 tainebleau to the place of embark- 

 ation at St. Tropes in Provence 

 can be relied upon, it displayed no 

 marks of the equanimity and firm- 

 ness of a great mind, but exhibited 

 all the changes and gusts of con- 

 tending emotions belonging to a 

 violent and unbalanced character. 

 The inhabitants of the south of 

 France being generally disaffected 

 to his person and government, his 

 reception in some of the towns 

 was such as to inspire him with 

 alarm, the effects of which on his 

 feelings he did not conceal ; and 

 he was obliged to the white 

 cockade, and to occasional dis- 

 guise, and sometimes to the inter- 

 ference of his attendants, for an 

 Unmolested passage. He was evi- 

 dently impatient to arrive at the 

 eea-coast; and having his choice 

 of conveyance in an English fri- 

 gate or a French corvette, he pre- 

 ferred the former, and seemed to 

 experience a remarkable exhilara- 

 tion of spirits when under the pro- 



tection of the British flag and ho- 

 nour. On the evening of May 3, 

 the frigate arriving off' Porto Fer- 

 rajo, in the isle of Elba, several 

 officers of the Russian, Austrian, 

 and English staffs, with two 

 French generals, landed, and hav- 

 ing officially communicated to the 

 comujandant of the port the 

 events which had brought thither 

 the celebrated personage who was 

 to assume the sovereignty of the 

 island, preparations were made for 

 his reception. On the next morn- 

 ing, a flag sent l)y Buonaparte was 

 brought into the town in cere- 

 mony, and was immediatel}' hoist- 

 ed on the castle amidst a salute of 

 artillery. Its ground was white, 

 interspersed with bees, and in the 

 centre were the arms of Bunna- 

 ])arte united with those of Elba. 

 Soon after, the Ex-emperor landed 

 with all his suite, under a salute of 

 cannon, returned by the frigate. 

 Preceded by three fiddlers and two 

 fifers, he was conducted in the 

 midst of a crowd of curious specta- 

 tors to the house of the mayor, 

 where he received the visits of the 

 superior civil officers, speaking to 

 each with an assumed air of frank- 

 ness and even gaiety. He then 

 mounted on horseback, and visited 

 all the forts ; and on the next day 

 he extended his ride through his 

 new dominions, particularly sur- 

 veying the iron mines which con- 

 stitute the chief wealth of the 

 island, and inquiring into the re- 

 venue yielded by them ; and thus 

 commenced his mock sovereignty. 

 His imperial title was continued as 

 if he were .still seated on the throne 

 of the French empire ; and the 

 Great Napoleori'a reign was ushered 

 in by addresses from the vice-pre- 

 fect and vicar-geneial to the people 



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